The present invention relates generally to an apparatus for compressing gas, and more specifically, to an internal combustion engine adapted to compress flammable gases such as natural gas.
Other integral gas compressor and internal combustion engines adapted for use on flammable gases are known. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,961,691 and 5,203,680, both to Waldrop, disclose a V-shaped internal combustion engine having a portion thereof converted to a gas compressor. The Waldrop compressor is constructed by modifying a Ford V-8 engine having a first and second bank of cylinders wherein a compressor head is installed on the first bank of cylinders and an engine head is installed on the second bank of cylinders. Thus, the Waldrop patents disclose a V-shaped gas compressor that provides an engine to compression cylinder ratio of one to one.
The preferred version of the present invention provides an efficiently integrated gas compressor and internal combustion engine which is constructed from an engine having a single bank of inline cylinders and a modified original engine head installed thereon. Further, the preferred version is adapted to produce an engine to compression cylinder ratio of two to one wherein the engine cylinders have a four-cycle operation and the compressor cylinders have a two-cycle operation.
It is known that an integral gas compressor and internal combustion engine can be readily constructed from a V-shaped engine by adding a compressor head to one bank of cylinders; thus, providing an engine to compression cylinder ratio of one to one. However, known integral gas compressor and internal combustion engines are incapable of being constructed from an inline-cylinder engine having a modified engine head assembly. Further, known integral gas compressors do not provide a greater than one to one engine to compression cylinder ratio. Therefore, the present invention is economical and efficient because it utilizes a modified original engine head assembly and produces a greater than one to one engine to compression cylinder ratio.
Hence, there is a need for a simple, economical and effective apparatus for compressing gas which is produced from an inline-cylinder engine, has a modified engine head assembly for energizing and compressing cylinders, and produces a greater than one to one engine to compression cylinder ratio; however, until now, no such apparatus has been developed.